NI Circuit Design Community Blog
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Importance of Ease-of-Use: Spreadsheet Hints
Let me first being with a quick introduction as to what I do at NI, and what I'll be writing about. My name is Garret, the same Garret you may have seen answering your questions on the Circuit Design Suite (Multisim, Ultiboard) forums. I'm one of the software developers for the NI Circuit Design Suite, which means I write the code for the software. As one of the developers, I have a somewhat unique perspective on the software, and through this blog, I'll be sharing some of this perspective. Often that perspective relates to things we've done for ease of use, highlighting little known features, or as Natasha said abstracting away the complexities of traditional electronics design.
For my first post, I'll be talking about a feature implemented in the spreadsheet view that (although subtle) helps designers intuitively understand the function performed by a particular spreadsheet cell. Circuit Design Suite allows for the use of spreadsheets or tables in many areas of the product to display and edit large amounts of information. Everything from the Spreadsheet View to a component's Pin Properties, to the configuration of diode model parameters are displayed using editable spreadsheets. Normally with spreadsheets, it is difficult to tell whether an item is editable, or what will happen when you try to edit the item until you actually try. Everything looks the same.
In Version 11.0, Circuit Design Suite introduced something I’m calling Spreadsheet Hints. These hints are little icons that appear to the right of the spreadsheet cell when you hover over a particular row. Cells that cannot be edited do not have icons. This feature was added as a direct result of a suggestion left on the Circuit Design Suite forums, which we monitor closely for product suggestions and feedback.
So, what are the possible spreadsheet hints and what do they mean? Here's a table that breaks them down:
| Icon | Edit behaviour | Description |
|---|---|---|
 | Text edit | Enter text or numeric information |
 | Dialog box | The item shows a dialog box for complex editing |
 | Drop-down combo box | Select one from a list of items |
 | Check list box | Select zero or more from a list of items |
 | Colour combo box | Select a colour from a list or show the colour selection dialog |
P.S. Any requests on "tips-and-tricks" you would like to learn about in the future? Let me know through the comments section below!
